


The Curse that bears your Name

by SachikoKuroichi



Category: Devil May Cry
Genre: M/M, Temporary Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-03
Updated: 2021-02-03
Packaged: 2021-03-15 03:55:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29182869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SachikoKuroichi/pseuds/SachikoKuroichi
Summary: Translation (and additional chapter) to "Der Fluch, der (k)einen Namen trägt" -"A smile was gracing his lips as he looked in the face which looked so similar to his own, even after all these years and after everything that had happened.  He was able too see himself in the reflection of Vergil’s eyes and then he knew that he’d been successful. He was finally free. "Vergil had been the curse of his existence for all his life - a constant of making his life difficult, a presence that haunted him in his dreams as well as every time he saw him in the facial features of his nephew. But this would come to an end now.
Relationships: Dante/Vergil (Devil May Cry)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 15





	1. Chapter One - The Curse

**Author's Note:**

  * A translation of [Der Fluch, der (k)einen Namen trägt](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20005132) by [SachikoKuroichi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SachikoKuroichi/pseuds/SachikoKuroichi). 



> Welcome to this little work of mine!  
> The first chap is a translation of my own story - done by myself this time. All because I started to write the bonus chap in English without noticing - happens more often than I'm comfortable to admit ^^°  
> So I had to translate the rest too. I hope you like it.  
> The song that triggered this little idea is actually a german one - here's a YT vid with some really good translation: [L'ame Immortelle - 5 Jahre (English Translation)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDwFon2NPoY)  
> I also translated the few lines I borrowed from it 🙈

Twins. That is what they were. Two sides of a coin. The sons of Sparda, traitor of demon kind. Feared by humans, despised by demons. But that was exactly the reason for them to stick together. Nobody would ever be able to understand them like they did. They were inseparable. At least that's what they had promised each other back then when they were little kids. But just one of them had been willing to stick to that promise.

_Vergil had left him._

The quest for power had been reason enough to abandon him and everything they were, everything they represented. He just threw it away. All the vows, the promises, even their bond suddenly insignificant and forgotten, thrown away. Just like that, as if they had never existed in the first place.

But that wasn't the case for him. Dante never had been someone to shy away from a challenge. He wouldn't give up just like that. The half demon wouldn't simply allow his brother to leave him. The bond that tied his soul to him ran way too deep for that.

To conquer Temen-ni-gru and fight the one you love the most had been taxing, exhausting, physically and mentally, but surrender had not been an option either. Dante would fight for their connection.

But in the end he had to admit that he hadn't been strong enough. To see Vergil fall into hell, on his own volition even, let Dante's heart stop. The wound that Yamato had inflicted on his inner palm was still hurting, pounding, as if it wanted to punish him. Normally such a minor damage would have been healed up until now, but it seemed that something in him was preventing that. While nobody was able to see his broken heart, his bleeding soul, this little wound on the surface was visible for everyone, a pretty nice proxy in his eyes. It was the only thing that Vergil had left him. Only a scar was left, a permanent reminder. That the only one he ever had trusted with all his heart, his soul, his very being, didn't want his trust. Didn't want **him**. The scar, the knowledge of its origins, the evidence of the truth, should only belong to him, and him alone.

Dante had been wearing his gloves ever since. He hadn't taken them off in front of someone else’s eyes ever again. He didn't want to answer any questions about how a half demon like him, powerful as a son of Sparda, came to a permanent scar like his. He didn't want to explain that this was the evidence for his dumb, outright foolish love for his brother. Someone, who not even hesitated for a split second before he betrayed, hurt and left him, just to obtain more and more power. They would try to comfort him, tell him that it wasn't his fault, that everything would be fine again sometime in the future, but it wasn't what he wanted. There was just one thing he really, truly wanted, that he needed so desperately in his life, but just his twin was able to give him that. Nobody else would ever be able to take his place. No one on this planet would be able to fill the void in his heart, to lessen the pain and heal his wounds.

***

Years later they were facing each other again. Dante had grown older and had gotten wiser. He had put up thick walls around his heart, supposed to shield him from any further pain and it had served him pretty well over all those past years. It spared him a lot of heartbreak and hurt, if not death itself.

But they were completely useless against the sight of what he encountered on Mallet Island. The sight of this distorted version of his twin was enough to tear everyone of his walls down. He felt as weak and helpless as he had back then. Seeing his beloved brother as Nelo Angelo, a marionette Mundus', nearly caused him to give up. He didn't feel like he was able to deal with the situation at hand at all. But all of a sudden, he was experiencing a completely new feeling, mixing with the panic, the fear, his pain, his feeling of powerlessness: Fury. Uncontrollable fury was rearing its ugly head within him for the very first time.

Finally, he knew exactly what he needed to do.

He would rid himself from this curse. Here and now. A way to finally be free. Something that had been overdue for a long time. His soul was screaming for him to do it. He wanted to finally be free, wanted to decide for himself on how to live his life. He didn't want to be a prisoner to this pointless love anymore.

It took him three fights. Three fights, that had cost him everything, used up all his strength, his will, his power. Physical, but these wounds would heal. His inner demon did it for him in no time. He finally had enough power for it, as he had gained some strength over the past years. Emotional, as not even all the strength his body had obtained over the years couldn't shield him from the hurt it inflicted on him to fight his beloved one. It caused his heart to slowly die. He had nothing to hold against this pain. Nothing but the knowledge that it had to be done, but this did nothing to lessen the amount of it.

The moment he finally was looking down into the face of his defeated brother, which was so similar to his own, he knew: He would live on, would finally be free.

His death would be the key to his happiness, his freedom.

_From now on it's just me, not 'us'._

Yeah, he loved him, more than he probably should have, but that times were over.

His love would die with him. Would accompany him into the afterlife, guide his way and protect him like he would do himself, if he would've allowed him to do so once in their life.

***

Again some years passed and nothing ever could've been able to prepare him for the events in Fortuna. What he found there, who he encountered during one of his missions.

Nero.

Vergil's son.

_Betrayal. Cheating._

Dante came to the bitter conclusion, that he never would be truly free. He had been a fool. He'd made a mistake in his younger years, had trusted him and even bound himself to him. He had allowed him to become important, make an impact on his emotional life. It was his fault, and his alone. So he had to deal with the consequences alone and face the truth. That he had to pay the price for his mistake for the rest of his life.

Nero was, even if he himself didn't know that, so like his father that it pained Dante to be near him. His stance, how he wielded Yamato, his general appearance. Everything about the kid reminded him of his twin when he still had been a teen. It made Dante remember the time before he left him. Just to conceive a child and raise hell on earth.

But he couldn't deny the fact that the similar energy, one that was feeling so familiar, was always drawing him in. Way too often he found himself in Nero's orbit, tried to find excuses and valid reasons to be in Fortuna, near his nephew. He longed for the good old times he once had shared with his brother. And even with Nero's behaviour being so unlike him that he couldn't get any more different even if he actively tried, he liked their little bantering. He lived for their little training fights. Even if he had to hold back, keep himself from going all out to not hurt the kid, as he was much more experienced and stronger than him, he enjoyed them greatly, being able to lose himself in the illusion.

But Dante really had to keep it together. He had to remind himself more than once. This wasn't his brother. This was Nero, a boy, innocent, and absolutely not at fault for his father being a total asshole. That he'd treated him like the dirt underneath his fingernails and stomped on his openly offered heart more than just once.

One day, when the kid pushed his hair back and held them in place for more than just a moment, looking in the distance, deeply in thought, Dante was about to lose it. He felt like someone just had pulled the ground from underneath his feet. His world flipped upside down. The similarities were too big. Dante couldn't deal with it.

_That's Nero! Not..._

„Vergil...“

***

One fateful day Morrison stepped into his shop, in tow a new client. A young man with black hair and an interesting way to dress. Leaning on a silver cane most of the time, carrying a familiar looking book around, while reciting seemingly random some lines out of said book. There was a mysterious aura surrounding that one. It spiked Dante’s interest almost immediately.

_“I have no name as I am but two days old... just kidding, you can call me V.”_

He brought V into his life.

Dante couldn’t believe what he’d been told afterwards.

His brother was back. All his efforts had been in vain. He realized that he’d never be truly free.

But V brought him a completely different epiphany, something so foreign and new that it threw him completely off, turned his whole world inside out. The following words were enough to distract him of his pain, would ease the strain, would cause his wounds to heal at least the tiniest bit, just enough for them to put on some scab, thin, barely holding on, but enough to stop the constant bleeding at least for some time.

For the first time since forever it felt like his heart and soul were at some sort of peace. There was no yearning, no mourning, no whining over lost time and a long lost love.

“I wish to be at your side. That’s what I always wanted. We have been just too proud to admit it. I want to be with you, at your side, existing solely for you. For now and forever.”

One fateful night, fleeting in its nature, but leaving both of them with no regrets, was everything the world granted them before it demanded to be saved by them. It didn’t matter what their hearts were telling them, they couldn’t simply put their own happiness over the fate of the whole human race. Besides that, V knew that he was living on borrowed time. Time that escaped him like sand would run through his fingers. There was no way he could hold onto it for all too long. Everything after the first fight against Urizen was blurry, everything was happening at once, not giving them a single moment to breathe or even attempt to talk to each other. Dante longed for the warmth that V sparked inside his heart. But for now the memories had to do and they were enough for him to fight on. It was enough to fight the jealousy that wanted to take a hold on him. He was acting ridiculous. After all he’d just spent a whole month unconscious while Nero and V had to deal with the chaos he and his twin had left them. It was his task to do this. Dealing with all the messes his twin created and the chaos he brought over the world always had been his burden to bear. But this time he had failed and it had resulted in Nero and V getting real close with each other, as they were fighting alongside, watching each other backs. It does things to you to trust someone that much to allow one to do that. Dante knew that better than anyone else and he felt more than just a little bit childish to feel jealous because of that. V had already put his feelings towards him into words, as well as into actions. Some time spent with Nero couldn’t change that so easily.

  
The final act was finally in reach. Urizen was on the ground, defeated, and was about to meet his end. Just then Dante would be finally free. Together with V. But again, life wasn’t that easy. Not when it came to him. His life always had to be more complicated than necessary.

His heart broke, despair took hold onto the remaining pieces of his shattered heart and soul, the moment he realized what V was planning to do. His body locked up, kept him frozen to the spot. His mind was screaming at him, urging him to run and stop him, but his body wasn’t following any commands. He was not able to move a single muscle. Just then, as V finally had reached and climbed on top of his demonic half, muttering some poetic last words to him, he was able to start running. But as always he’d been too late.

Urizen and V fused in front of his eyes, a bright light forced him to avert his eyes, just to be able to lay them onto the now complete form of his reborn brother.

_The curse of his existence._

***

To follow him into hell was nothing Dante had to think about twice, as it felt natural to him like breathing.  
The spell, that his twin had bewitched him with in the very moment of their birth, was still intact, causing Dante to orbit around his twin like the planets did around the sun. He was always in Vergil’s orbit, voluntarily or not.

But now, after all those endless years, Dante dared to hope. V had told him that his feelings weren’t as one-sided as he’d always thought. Maybe he could convince him to finally admit that his love was reciprocated.

“Such foolishness, Dante.”

Apparently he couldn’t. How could he ever think something so foolish? Why did he dare to get his hopes up? V obviously had been a part of his twin, but now he was buried underneath Vergil’s pride and Urizen. V was out of reach.

_V was dead._

It was the moment he realized: He’d been looking at the problem from the totally wrong angle the whole fucking time. He’d tried to find a solution while misunderstanding the problem.

Dante took his beloved guns and, together with all the other demon arms he’d acquired during his latest adventure, dumped them next to him. Just his loyal sword remained at his side.

The brothers fought against each other whenever the demon hordes gave them some time, between those waves there always was time for a little spar or two. It wasn’t a serious life or death situation as normally, they just tried to determine who’s the stronger twin.

That probably was the reason for Vergil to look as surprised as he did when Dante didn’t dodge the next attack but embraced it with open arms instead. It was a clean cut through his heart.

The pain which he felt in that moment felt pretty dull in comparison to all the ones he had to endure during the years of his life up until now. He sighed, relieved.

Surprise morphed into shock the moment Vergil realized that his twin wasn’t healing.

Dante noticed that there were some hectic words directed at him, but he wasn’t able to hear them anymore and if he’d to be honest he’d to admit that he didn’t want to hear them.

A smile was gracing his lips as he looked in the face which looked so similar to his own, even after all these years and after everything that had happened. He was able too see himself in the reflection of Vergil’s eyes and then he knew that he’d been successful.

He was finally free.


	2. Chapter Two - Finally broken

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the second part! I really hope you like it. I'm actually really happy with it. Fucking up Vergil is definitely one of my favourite hobbies - guess my bby girl @gummibeere is rubbing off on me xD

An all engulfing warmth was the first thing his senses reported to him when he was at least somewhat capable of forming a thought. Was this the afterlife already? It felt better than he’d imagined. He felt protected, carefree and loved. The bright light that was trying to burn his eyes to ashes even through his closed eyelids was probably a little bit rude, but Dante was too content to care about that minor thing. A pleased sigh started to build in his chest. Not that he had a chest left where it could bubble to life in the first place.

Noticing that the light started to fade, Dante got curious and wanted to open his eyes. Dying had taken a toll on him, as he was too weak to even do that, but if he was something, then it was persistent and stubborn. That he felt his power levels rising at the same rate the light dimmed.

Finally he was able to open his eyes. Immediately afterwards he wished he’d not done it. The first thing he recognized was the plain sky of the underworld and Dante wondered why the afterlife was so damned contradicting. How could it feel so comforting and look like the worst place at the same time?

Which confused him even more was the fact that his brother’s face came into view next. He looked like he had been crying currently. But that can’t be possibly true. Vergil wouldn’t cry. Not over something mundane like his death. Faint traces of the blinding light in the corner of his eye was enough to catch his attention. He was fast enough to see the Golden Orb phase out of existence completely. Confusion took a strong hold on Dante’s thoughts. It didn’t make sense to him. A gold orb would mean that he wasn’t dead at all. That the warm feeling hadn’t been the afterlife. That he was still in hell, quite literally, and that Vergil had… saved… him? It didn’t add up in his head. His twin always wanted to get rid of him after all. They tried to kill each other since they’re teenagers. Okay, actually that’s not quite true. Dante never wanted to harm his brother. He loved him too much for that. Always had and probably forever will.

“Why?”

Vergil seemed to be taken aback by that question. A stunned expression was the only answer he got. Until this sensation shifted into something more violent. Anger started to rage through his veins, spread into the tiniest part of his being.

“Why? That’s what I should ask you! Why were your wounds not healing? Why did you take that hit? Why for fucks sake didn’t you evade it?! It’s like you asked for death!”

Dante wasn’t sure what to say to that. It was exactly like his twin had guessed. Why was he so upset about it? Getting rid of him was his life goal, wasn’t it?

“Answer me!”

Dante shrugged.

“Maybe I was.”

The hit came out of nowhere for Dante, causing his lip to tear open and bleed slightly, before it closed just moments afterwards. Seemed like his power was completely back.   
Vergil was back on him again, grabbing the front of his coat and pulling him close.

“Don’t you dare to attempt this ever again! You’re not allowed to leave me.”

The confusion kept on growing within him. What exactly was going on here?   
Gentle lips capturing his in a rough, desperate kiss were the metaphorical cherry on the top. Dante really wanted some explanations for his twin’s weird behaviour but right now, with him getting the very thing he’d longed for since forever, he couldn’t bring himself to care too much.

“You foolish, suicidal, selfish bastard of mine… I hate you for making me feel that way.”   
“Sweet” whispers against their still connected lips. Strong arms wrap themselves around him, engulfing him in a bone-crushing hug, while he couldn’t deny the salty taste of their kiss any longer. Vergil was crying? For him?

The whole composition of their bodies was greatly uncomfortable for Dante and he could just assume that it wasn’t that much better for Vergil, but he didn’t dare to break this tender moment, too fragile it seemed to be to him.   
Not that he could find the willpower to separate himself from those wonderful lips. He didn’t care how wet and salty this kiss was getting with every passing second, he just wanted to lose himself in it.

Vergil deepened the kiss, almost trying to devour Dante, while pressing himself even closer to his body, like he wanted to fuse their bodies together.

That’s when Dante started to feel something shifting, steadily changing. Some kind of bond was formed, a connection long forgotten rediscovered. Feelings that not belonged to him started to fill his mind.

* * *

Vergil’s POV:

He was beyond shocked. What had just happened? The attack was sloppy, easy to avoid, how could this happen? Vergil’s hands, that still held onto Yamato like some kind of lifeline, started to shake. A cut through the heart was nothing either of them could just shake off. But with their accelerated healing it was at least possible to survive it. Just for the tiny fact that his twin was in fact **not** healing. Blood was pouring at an alarming rate out of his body, pooling underneath both of them. Vergil screamed random words at his twin, ones that he couldn’t recall afterwards.

Pure terror caused him to freeze on the spot the moment his ears weren’t able to make out Dante’s heartbeat anymore.

A pained scream echoed through the air. Vergil let go of the still bloodied blade, causing it to fall into the pool of blood. Just for its wielder to follow shortly afterwards.

Still deeply in shock, Vergil looked at his twin, who was lying there, with his eyes closed and his lips formed into a satisfied smile, he felt something foreign start to build up within him. His vision got blurry quickly and soon afterwards violent sobs started to torment his body. Tears fell freely as Vergil mourned the death of his beloved twin. The only family he’d had left. The only one it was worth living for. Just gone… like that, without any premonition.

He couldn’t recall for how long he was sitting there like that, staring at his dead twin, but at some point something snapped and Vergil stood again with newfound determination. He wouldn’t allow him to leave him just like that! The older twin refused to live without Dante. He probably wouldn’t be able to start anew without him.

So Vergil grabbed the corpse and started off on the journey of getting all the components for a Golden Orb. While he himself never had any use for such a thing, he knew enough about it to know that it was the only thing that could bring him his beloved brother back. Without his notes and various tools to get the alchemic work done, there was just one way to get his hands on a Golden Orb: To find a Divine Statue and pay a hefty price for it.

Time in hell was a weird little thing and Vergil soon lost track of it on his quest to get his brother back. Dragging him around all the time was tiresome on top of that and he denied himself any rest. He vowed to not stop until he could hug his brother and tell him how stupid he was.

This was probably the reason for his foolish behaviour when he finally held the desired object within his hands. Because he definitely wasn’t known for breaking down into tears just like that, holding his dead brother close and sobbing into his chest.

Thankfully, the orb reacted immediately to the deceased body and healed all damages and brought Dante back to life.

* * *

Dante’s POV:

“I’m sorry for being a coward and trying to leave you like that, brother.” Dante whispered against Vergil’s lips.

“You can make it up to me after we get out of here. Let’s go home.”

Dante couldn’t suppress the smile that threatened to split his face in half, too happy he was to hear those words out of his brother’s mouth.

“Nothing I’d love to do more. I’ll follow you to the end of this world.”

Vergil let out an amused sound.

“Careful, brother, I may take you up on that.”

Dante took Vergil’s hand in his, intertwined their fingers and squeezed them gently. It was the only answer both of them needed.

Vergil summoned Yamato and held it out to Dante.

“Care to help me with that?”

Without further ado, the younger twin grabbed Yamato and together they slashed the seams between the dimensions, creating a portal towards their home. With a final smile at each other, full of unspoken love for each other, they stepped through it. The first step into a brighter future.

Dante’s curse was finally broken. Broken by the very cause of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy End! Wuuupii~  
> Even though I also enjoyed writing a tragic end for once... I just can't stand to see Dante suffer for too long - he does that plenty in canon already xD
> 
> If you liked it - let me know! Kudos are very much appreciated! (Comments too - but I'm really shy when it comes to answering to them 🙈 - shame on me ^^°
> 
> As always,  
> Stay safe!  
> Love ya all~  
> I see you in my next fic!  
> Yours, Sachi <3


End file.
